140 



SCIENCE 



[Vol. IV., No. 80. 



Mr. P. L. Sclater, Mr. A. Sedgwick, Mr. H. Seebohm, 

 Mr. T. W. Sorby, Sir William Thomson, and Dr. E. S. 

 Tylor. 



— The National electrical commission met in Phil- 

 adelphia on Aug. 7. It was decided that the confer- 

 ence to be conducted by the commission will be called 

 for Monday, Sept. 8, to be then continued from day 

 to day, as may be found necessary. The invitations 

 to the conference will be confined to physicists of 

 eminence, and to experts in the practical management 

 of electrical appliances and apparatus. It is proposed 

 to extend special invitations to prominent foreign 

 visiting electricians. It was also decided to issue a 

 circular inviting the conferees to submit papers to 

 be read before the conference. 



It is not definitely known what subjects will be 

 discussed at the conference, but the following matters 

 have been suggested : the sources of electrical energy; 

 the theoretical conditions necessary to the most 

 efficient construction of the dynamo-electric machine 

 for the various purposes of practical work; the elec- 

 trical transmission of energy; the systems of arc 

 and incandescent lighting; the theory of the electric 

 arc, storage batteries, electro-metallurgy; lighthouses 

 for the coast; applications of electricity to military 

 and mining engineering; lightning protection; induc- 

 tion in telephone lines, and the problem of long-dis- 

 tance telephoning; the question of underground 

 wires; atmospheric electricity; earth-currents and 

 terrestrial magnetism; photometry and standards for 

 photometric measurements; the ratio of the electro- 

 magnetic to the electro-static system of units, and the 

 electro-magnetic theory of light; and finally, on ac- 

 count of the pressing necessity for accurate and uni- 

 form electrical measurements, it is probable that the 

 question of establishing a National bureau of physi- 

 cal standards will receive proper attention. 



— The circulars concerning the proposed inter- 

 national scientific congress, to which reference was 

 made in No. 77, have been issued; and the names of 

 the signers received up to Aug. 4 are : of the 

 special committee on the part of the American asso- 

 ciation, T. Sterry Hunt, S. Newcomb; officers of the 

 association, George F. Barker, F. W. Putnam, Edw. 

 D. Cope, John W. Langley, William H. Holmes, 

 G. W. Hough, Franklin B. Hough, Alfred Springer, 

 Theodore G. Wormley; fellows of the association, 

 Cleveland Abbe, Harrison Allen, William Whitman 

 Bailey, Albert S. Bickmore, Francis Blake, Thos. T. 

 Bouve, H. P. Bowditch, Edw. Burgess, Lucien Carr, 

 F. W. Clarke, A. J. Cook, W. O. Crosby, Charles K. 

 Cross, William H. Dall, Persifor Frazer, G. Brown 

 Goode, Asaph Hall, C. E. Hanaman, William Hark- 

 ness, Edwin J. Houston, Alpheus Hyatt, B. Joy 

 Jeffries, Gaetano Lanza, Albert K. Leeds, H. Carvill 

 Lewis, J. A. Lintner, Garrick Mallery, W. J. McGee, 

 C. S. Minot, Charles E. Munroe, John M. Ordway, 

 Henry F. Osborn, Edward C. Pickering, J. W. Powell, 

 Ira Remsen, Alfred P. Rockwell, S. H. Scudder, 

 George M. Sternberg, P. R. Uhler, A. E. Verrill, 

 George L. Vose, Francis A. Walker, Justin Winsor. 



Probably some persons who have not received any 

 circulars would be glad to support the movement; 



and we trust that any such will send their names to 

 Dr. Minot. There has been some difficulty in reach- 

 ing many persons during the vacation season; and it 

 is known that omissions of certain addresses have 

 unfortunately been unavoidable. 



The support which the circular has received is 

 remarkable for its extent and character, especially 

 when its spontaneousness is considered. Most of 

 the gentlemen upon the list given above are known 

 as scientific investigators of acknowledged superi- 

 ority, and many of them enjoy high fame; so that 

 the plan of founding an international scientific con- 

 gress meets the approval of a large proportion of those 

 who contribute most to the dignity and importance 

 of science in America. 



— In response to an invitation sent out by the local 

 committee of the American association for the ad- 

 vancement of science at Philadelphia, the following 

 foreign scientific societies, among others, have sent 

 the delegates mentioned to represent them at the ap- 

 proaching meeting in that city: Royal society, Pro- 

 fessor Sir William Thomson, W. T. Blanford, H. W. 

 Moseley; Royal institution, Professor James Dewar; 

 Zoological society, P. L. Sclater (secretary), H. Saun- 

 ders, G. E. Dobson; Royal microscopical society, Rev. 

 W. H. Dallinger, A. W. Bennett, James Glaisher; 

 Royal Irish academy, Prof. R. S. Ball; Royal geologi- 

 cal society of Ireland, Professor Valentine Ball (presi- 

 dent), Prof. W. J. Sollas; Royal Dublin society, Prof. 

 A. C. Haddon, G. F. Fitzgerald; Royal zoological 

 society of Ireland, H. M. Barton, W. E. Peebles, A. 

 Trail; Philosophical society of Glasgow, H. Muir- 

 head, James Mastear, Prof. J. G. McKendrick, W. C. 

 Crawford, John Kirsop; Natural-history society of 

 Glasgow, D. C. Glen; Royal botanical society, W. C. 

 Crawford; Manchester literary and philosophical 

 society, Prof. A. Milnes Marshall; Asiatic society of 

 Bengal, Major J. Waterhouse of Calcutta; Asiatic 

 society of Japan, Dr. D. Murray, Rev. E. W. Lyle, 

 Perceval Lowell; Societe anthropologique de Brux- 

 elles, Dr. Victor Jacques (general secretary) ; Asso- 

 ciation Francaise pour l'avancement des sciences, 

 Professor Joubert and Professor Silva; University of 

 Japan (Tokio), Prof. D. Kikuchi (dean of depart- 

 ment of science) ; Societe entomologique de Bel- 

 gique, Dr. H. A. Hagen; Ornithologischer verein in 

 Wien, Dr. C. Hart Merriam ; Royal society of Canada, 

 a large number of delegates. 



— At about five minutes past two, eastern time, 

 on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 10, an earthquake- shock 

 was felt along the eastern coast, from North Caro- 

 lina to Maine. The direction of the motion of the 

 wave appeared, to most who considered it, as from 

 north to south, or north-west to south-east. The 

 motion, as magnified at the top of the highest build- 

 ing in Boston, was sufficient to roll the signal-officer 

 off his lounge. In New Jersey, where the shock was 

 most severe, the railway-station at Seabright was 

 shifted to one side, ' shaking up the contents.' 



— The meeting this year of the German society of 

 naturalists and physicians will be held at Magdeburg, 

 Sept. 18-23. 



